Artifacts
by TatorVerse
Summary: "People don't really forget; they just cease to remember." Future AU in which journalist, Betty Cooper, sits down to have an interview with an old flame.
1. Chapter 1

The past is only as relevant as the present would allow it to be. The progression of the years, with all its tumbles and turns, dust over the artifacts of our youth, creating a thin layer of temporary oblivion. People don't really forget; they just cease to remember.

The murder that once shook an entire town, revealing the many secrets and the multitude of layers that each town folk carefully hid from the surface, was now just another closed case in a sheriff's file closet. Of course, the catalyst that was Jason Blossom's death had led to several changes that never really got undone. People changed, the whole town did. It was his death that led many of the town's youth to venture away from the place they once called home. People parted ways, taking on different paths as people do upon graduation. However, the invisible bond that tied them all together was still present, forgotten or not. A murder, after all, isn't just something people can turn away from. However, people can chose to push it aside in favor of new development in their lives.

For Betty Cooper, Jason Blossom's death was a thought that was always lingering but never really attended to. With her sister raising the once star athlete's child, it wasn't really something she could escape from. But she knew that her days as a teenage sleuth hunting down murderers were far behind her.

Now, she was just another journalist trying to get a byline on the front page. Although she had graduated from local fluff pieces, she was far from delivering hard-hitting exposés. She was, however, satisfied with having a regular column on interviews she'd have with people of interest. It gave her a stable income and allowed her to meet interesting people and know their stories. As a generally friendly person and a much talented journalist, Betty was assigned the job after an opening came up. It wasn't all that great, but it wasn't all that bad as well. Sometimes she'd get to interview the police or even witnesses when a big crime came up. Once, she even got to interview her old friends Josie and the Pussycats as they were a rising talent in the area. If you asked her, she was pretty happy with where she was. She'd climb the ladder to the front page eventually. But as a twenty-six year-old journalist, interviewing people was her life now.

So when news of a particular best-selling writer being in town came up, Betty shouldn't have been all that surprised when her boss called her into her office.

"Betty dear, I assume you've heard the news." Jane, her forty-three year-old boss, stated as she smiled at her from across the desk.

"I think that's kind of vague since we write all sorts of news each day." She responded. Jane only laughed at her in good humor.

"Oh, ever the joker you are." She said. "I'm talking about best-selling author F.P. Jones III coming in town for his book tour."

"Ah, yes. I've heard." She said with pursed lips. Jane continued, not really noticing the girl's slight discomfort.

"Now, I've scheduled a meeting with his agent right before his first book signing. It's going to be on Thursday. Here's the address and the contact details of Mr. Jones's agent, Dylan. Also, here's a list of questions you can ask him about the book, if you haven't read it. But I suggest you do. We don't want to insult Mr. Jones, now do we?" she said, sliding a few pieces of paper toward Betty.

"Oh don't worry. I have." She replied dryly.

"Excellent!" Jane said, clasping her hands in delight, not catching Betty's uncharacteristic response to a new piece.

"Uh, Jane?" Betty hesistated.

"Yes, dear?" the older woman eyed the girl carefully.

"I was wondering…maybe someone else could do the interview instead of me?" she suggested, "I mean I've seen Carl with his nose in that book and I know how much he loves it. I'm sure he'd be thrilled to take on this job instead of me."

"Oh, nonsense!" Jane merely chuckled, "Carl may be a good worker, but you Betty, you are the best! No one can interview people the way you do. You always know how to ask the right questions and get the right answers from these people."

"But - " she begins but Jane cuts her off.

"Besides, if I might remind you, Betty, this is your job and I am your boss. You do what a say." She said, replacing all humor from her face with a stern expression, "You should be thankful for getting this job, you know. Mr. Jones usually isn't that fond of interviews. But for whatever reason, he has agreed to this, and we shall not disappoint. Am I making myself clear?"

"Yes, Jane." She sighed with resignation.

"Now that's my yes girl!" she clapped with delight, "I expect a draft on my desk by Monday morning at the latest."

And with that, Betty was shooed away from Jane's office and back to her desk. She sat down with a deep exhale exiting her lungs, pulling back the drawer to pick up a slightly battered book.

 _Riverdale's Very Own in Cold Blood_

She ran a finger through the slightly worn out spine before flipping the cover open. She stopped at one of the first few pages of the book. It was mostly blank aside from two words that her eyes were glued on to.

 _For Juliet._

Nothing followed. It was a simple dedication. But the words felt heavy and strong, never leaving her mind even as she went home and plopped down on the couch she and Veronica shared. She sighed and closed her eyes, letting her head fall on the couch. Her stomach churned in light dread at the thought of the upcoming Thursday. She took a moment to take it all in, only being disturbed at the sound of tiny footsteps heading her way. She opened her eyes and a small smile instantly made its way to her face.

"Hey there, little cutie! I missed you." She cooed, picking up the dark haired child and sitting him atop her lap.

"So how was your day?" she smiled, looking straight into his big blue eyes.


	2. Chapter 2

Betty looked into the big blue eyes of the child in front of her, and instantly her discomfort and fears were washed away for the moment. She always loved children. They somehow had this magic that filled her heart up with delight. They were so precious and innocent. They reminded her of a time in her life where everything felt like a fairytale.

Before the little tyke could answer her though, a voice cut in from behind.

"Oh hey, B. I didn't know you were home." Veronica greeted. Her hair was wrapped in a towel, mostly likely just out of the shower.

"Yeah. I just got in actually." The blonde replied, "I didn't know Tyler was coming over." She said gesturing to the toddler on her lap.

"Yeah. Tyler's usual babysitter had an emergency so Reggie decided to dump the little munchkin on me."

"Wow. He must've been stretched thin if you were his only option." She teased her friend. Veronica responded with an eye roll.

"I don't know what you're talking about. The kid loves me. Right, Ty?" she said, smiling too widely at the child causing him to hide in Betty's blonde tresses in response. Betty laughed at the child's response while Veronica merely huffed.

"Well, Ronnie. Kids don't lie." Betty laughed.

"Well, if he's anything like his father then maybe he does." She defends.

"I doubt it. This little boy is nothing short from an angel. Right, Tyler?" The boy smiles shyly, still clinging on to Betty's hair. "And you have to give Reggie a break. He's gone a long way since high school."

"True." She admits looking at the small child fondly.

Reggie Mantle was one of the few who didn't change all that much after Jason Blossom's death. While many had realizations that "life was too short" and others, like the Scooby gang, experienced a more direct effect from Jason's murder, Reggie remained to be, well, Reggie.

The pivotal moment in his life had actually occurred later on in his life. At first, Reggie was your regular party-hard fratboy. Like many of the Riverdale gang, Reggie decided to pursue higher education in New York City. With a football scholarship and reasonably good grades, Reggie was able to get into a good college. He enjoyed his college years, studying during his breaks, football practice at night, and partying on the weekend. He may not seem like the type initially, but Reggie was actually a pretty put-together guy. He knew how to manage his time well while still getting the best out of the college experience. Sure, he was never the top of the class, but he never veered near the bottom as well.

However, during his senior year, Reggie Mantle slipped. He got a call from one of his previous one night stands asking to meet up. He soon found out that he got her pregnant. The girl had decided not to abort the child, but she wasn't going to keep him as well. She decided to go for adoption, informing Reggie out of simple formality. This was the moment that changed Reggie's life forever. Shocking everyone he knew, Reggie Mantle decided to keep the child and raise him as a single father.

As fate would have it, little Tyler Mantle was born a week before graduation. Reggie never got to march or have the whole ceremonial tradition. He was too busy finding a job to support his son while struggling with the whole fatherhood thing. Luckily, the previous victims of his childhood bullying ended up chipping in, offering to babysit little Tyler every time he had a job interview.

Reggie was never the same after Tyler came into this world. Sure, he could be cocky and arrogant at times. Old habits do die hard. But somehow he was softer now, more mature. As cliché as it may seem, the pains of single fatherhood had made Reggie into a man.

Veronica was disrupted from her musings at the sound of the doorbell.

"That must be Reggie." She exclaimed as she headed to the door. Betty merely nodded as she continued to play with the child on her lap.

"So you owe me." The brunette greeted the man in the doorway.

"Yeah sorry about that, Ronnie." He huffed, clearly tired from work. "Stacy ditched me on the last minute. I'd have gone with someone else but…"

"Yeah, yeah. I know. I'm not exactly people's first option when it comes to child care. I get it." She rolls her eyes at the implication.

"Glad you understand." He grins, teasing the brunette further. "So how was the job search?" he asked, closing the door behind him.

"Well, I was babysitting your child today instead of going out to find work. How do you think it went?" she sassed.

"Right. Sorry." he winced.

"Oh, Ronnie. Don't be such a meanie." Betty defended the man. "Besides, I'd gladly take a day off of work if it means getting to spend time with this little munchkin." She cooed.

"I'll take your word for it, Cooper." Reggie joked.

"Well, if an emergency comes up on Thursday, please be my guest." The blonde responded.

"Thursday?" Veronica raised an eyebrow. "Why? What are you avoiding on Thursday?"

 _Oh. Shit._

"I – uh…" she scrambled for an excuse but her brain has yet to recover from the day's events.

"Spill." Veronica said, crossing her arms across her torso.

Before she could prod Betty any further though, the grumbling sound of Tyler's stomach caught everyone's attention. Reggie smiled at his son and walked over to the couch, picking the boy up into his strong arms.

"Well, since I owe Lodge here, why don't we continue this little conversation over dinner?" Reggie offered.

"Perfect." Veronica exclaimed. "I'll call Kevin so that the gang's complete. I have a feeling I know what this is about." She said, removing the towel from her head as she started getting ready.

"Do we really have to?" Betty whined. "Look, it's been a long day and I just need some rest." She tried to argue her way out, but she should've known better than to argue with Veronica Lodge.

"Not a chance, B. You know I'll always have my way." The brunette smirked at the blonde.

Betty could only groan in response as she is led out the door by her best friend. Some things never change.

 **I know it's kind of a filler chapter so I'll try to update real soon. Next chapter, we'll get a peak of everyone's situation post-high school. Oh and I'm not quite sure if I'd be going in the whole Ronnie-Reggie direction but I like to play with character interactions so we'll see. As for Archie, he'll make an appearance later on...maybe.**


	3. Chapter 3

Home. In the traditional all-American dream, home was found behind a white picket fence. It was a house engulfed in the aroma of a warm cooked meal shared by the residents of the house. For Betty and Jughead, however, home was not equivalent to their place of residence. With problematic parents and missing siblings, "home" was far from being home.

Instead, home became different things to them throughout the years. For a significant amount of time in her life, Betty Cooper had found home in young Archie Andrews. And for Jughead Jones, the Twilight Drive-In was, quite literally, his home for some time. However, these things that gave them a sense of comfort and safety, this home they called theirs, ceased to be.

For some time in their shared history, however, they had found a home that they both called theirs. Although the Blue and Gold office was a special place to them, it had also housed this heavy atmosphere caused mostly by the then mystery of Jason Blossom's death. Instead, home was actually found at a booth in Pop's Diner. Their booth.

With all the bad things happening at the time, Pop's was a place in which they could relieve some stress and escape the harsh reality that was their lives. In that booth, they were no longer sleuths trying to uncover a grave mystery. Instead, they were just teenagers enjoying countless conversations shared over burgers and milkshakes.

For a minute, Betty could just imagine being in that booth again, laughing at some sarcastic remark that Jughead had just made while taking a bite off the French fry she had just stolen from his plate. But in reality, she was not there. She hadn't been there for a long time now. Instead, she was in another booth in a different diner in a different city with different company.

"So now that we've eaten would you mind telling me what's so important that I just had to be here?" Kevin asked the raven haired girl.

"Oh Kevin dear, you make it sound like it's such a bad thing that we're all here together." Veronica replied.

"As much as I love you all…minus you," he said pointing at Reggie who was not that offended to be honest; "I do love my shows as well. Now, spill. I assume there's some gossip that needs to be relayed."

"Right you are, Kev. But not from me though." Said Veronica. "Betty?" she smiled at the blonde, chin resting on clasped fingers in classic "I'm waiting" style.

The blonde merely sipped from her diet coke, feeling more and more uncomfortable at the eyes planted on her.

"Come on, Cooper. We all know what a bad liar you are. It's eventually gonna come out either way." Reggie egged her to just give in.

"Hey! I am not a bad liar!" she protested. The gang only gave her a look.

"So," Veronica began, "does this have anything to do with say a particular author we all know visiting New York?"

"Okay. Fine. Yes." Betty caved. "I'm supposed to write an article on his book tour. The interview's on Thursday."

"Are you nervous?" Kevin asked.

"Maybe. I mean, it's…it's been years after all." She sighed. "I honestly don't know what to expect."

"Have you tried asking your boss for someone else to fill in for you?" Veronica suggested.

"She won't budge." Betty shook her head.

"I don't see what the whole issue's about." Reggie piped in. "Weren't you and Donnie Darko, y'know, close?"

"Understatement of the year, Reggiekins!" Veronica exclaimed. "They were basically Romeo and Juliet 2.0."

"So what happened?" The raven-haired man asked.

"It's a mystery to us all." Kevin answered. "Betty and Jughead never gave an explanation. We just accepted it and moved on. I was quite disappointed though. I honestly thought you two were going to be endgame."

"And that's what you said about Archie and me, and we all remember how that crashed and burned." The blonde replied.

"But that was Archie." Veronica argued. "Jughead was different. He was really in love with you, B. We could all see it."

Betty frowned at this, clearly affected by Veronica's words.

"I'm sorry. I know he's a sensitive topic for you. I shouldn't have - "

"No. It's all right. You're right. He was." She said. "But that was years ago. Things have changed now. I guess I was just a little shaken up by the idea of seeing him again after so many years."

"So what are you going to do about Thursday?" Reggie asked.

"Nothing. I'm going to go there and do my job like the professional journalist I am." Betty smiled, reassuring the others that she was going to be just fine. But deep inside, it was all a much different case.

Betty sighed as she finally got to lie in bed, emotionally exhausted from the long day. They had eventually moved on to different topics such as Veronica's job search and Kevin's annoying co-workers, but Betty could not get Jughead out of her mind.

Suddenly, she had the urge to look over the book once more. She sat upright on her bed and carefully fished the novel out of her purse. It had been over a month since the book had been released, and already it was on its second week on the bestseller's list. In high school, Betty had witnessed the creation of the novel. She remembered the many times Jughead's fingers danced across the keyboards while they were in their booth at Pop's. She had read the many revisions Jughead had claimed were not quite there yet, but she had never really read the final version until she had purchased a copy of her own.

She had started reading not knowing what to expect. Sure she knew the story, but it had been years and she had no idea how many more revisions the book had to go through since the last one Jughead had allowed her to read. However, Jughead did not disappoint as his writing skills had clearly developed through the years. The book was a hit! But as she finished she felt quite…different.

As it was a book based on Jason Blossom's murder, it was expected that the events written would reflect Riverdale's situation at the time. And of course, at the time, Jughead and Betty were in love. Although the names had been changed for the sake of privacy, it was clear which one she was. And every time she read through a moment her character and his shared her heart would tighten as nostalgia flooded her system.

But what made her read through the book over and over again was the way Jughead had written it. Somehow, the book had felt like this letter meant to be sent to her. There were so many Easter eggs she felt Jughead had planted just for her, messages hidden from plain sight but ones she had to carefully dissect and decipher. It was both exciting and terrifying at the same time, as if he was communicating to her through the pages he had written about a murder. And by the end, she was unsure what it really was he was trying to tell her, if there was any at all.

To be quite honest, if it was under different circumstances, Betty would not have minded seeing him again. But after reading the book, she felt quite woozy at the thought of any kind of meeting between the two of them, let alone one that was for the sole purpose of talking about the book. How could she not when at the end of his book he had basically said, in a manner in which he knew only she could pick up on, that he was still in love with Betty Cooper?


End file.
